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A Plea from a Stroke Survivor on World Stroke Awareness Day
I beg you to BE FAST. Recognize the warning signs. Call for help.
On 7 March 2023, at a company get-together, I stood on a stage in front of all my colleagues to give a speech titled “BE FAST.” I bet they thought it would be about yet another productivity hack or efficiency metric, and I didn’t blame them. I was the Senior Director of Product Operations, after all; being fast and chasing them down with efficacy improvements was my turf. What they didn’t know was that it was my 75th day as a stroke survivor. I took the opportunity to share my story with all of them in one breath, and, most importantly, to educate them about the warning signs of stroke. Twenty minutes later, when half of them were crying, I considered my speech’s impact proof that I had accomplished my mission.
World Stroke Day takes place on the 29th of October each year to raise awareness of stroke prevention, treatment, and support for survivors. I want to give you a first-person, insider’s perspective focusing on recognition of warning signs.
The most recent worldwide study on stroke I was able to find is by Feigin VL, Volovici V, Brainin M, Norrving B, Martins SO, Roth GA. The Latest Global Stroke Fact Sheet 1990–2023: Global Burden of Disease Study. Neuroepidemiology. Published…
